First Look: Veritas Tavern

Thursday

Aug 30, 2012 at 12:01 AMAug 30, 2012 at 9:27 PM

Shelley Mann, Columbus Alive

From the moment I walked out of Veritas Tavern, Delaware's new molecular gastronomy spot helmed by Josh Dalton of 1808 American Bistro, I've taken on the task of convincing people they must go there, and soon. I'll admit it's for purely selfish reasons -- I want this place to succeed so I can keep eating there.

And I worry that not enough people will make the haul to Delaware (at a 40-minute drive from downtown, it's definitely out there) ... and that there aren't enough people who live in Delaware, period, to keep a place as special as this one afloat. From the just-plain-fun small plates menu (every single bite was fantastic) to a selection of cocktails themed after famous writers to a focus on 22-ounce bombers of high-octane beer, Veritas is worth cheering about.

Now let's talk about what I ate on my inaugural visit. Up top is a fairly straightforward crowd-pleaser, Bacon Risotto topped with a perfectly cooked egg, crumbles of smoked white cheddar and intensely flavored little bacon twists.

Meanwhile, here's the dish I can't stop raving about. It's called Corn + Beef + Cabbage + Smoke. Translated, that's: a base of sweet corn foam topped with pretty cabbage sprouts and a few hunks of the most incredible beef I've ever tasted, finished off with a smoke gun to add some campfire ambience. Dalton explained it as beef brisket that gets cooked sous-vide for 72 hours, then smoked. I can't even think of enough adjectives for it: tender, smoky, fall-apart, delicious, delicious, delicious.

This is essentially grown-up fish sticks: big hunks of monkfish covered in a crunchy tempura batter shell, served with fries and a dill-tartar hollandaise.

And these riffs on jalapeno poppers are fried squash blossoms filled with cream cheese and roasted peppers.

If those dishes didn't sufficiently whet your appetite, here's a look at the entire menu I had the night I visited (menus change daily):